Previous binding devices have been concerned with the holding of perforated sheets or the like. This can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. No's.: 1,829,613; 3,246,653; 4,607,970; and, 3,970,331. All of these prior art devices solve the problem of binding paper together but do not address the specialized problems that are encountered when binding film and/or plates together.
A stack of film needs to be bound in a firm and secure manner to decrease the sliding of one sheet of film against the other, which produces scratches and destroys the quality of the film or flats. A need exists therefore for a binder that will hold film and plates in a secure and safe manner.
Most printing companies store their films and flats and plates anywhere from two to five years. This is due to the fact of the likelihood of the customer reordering the same films and flats again for their next job. For the storage of these films and flats the printing companies do not use albums because albums are too big and bulky. In most shops they either stack the film and flats loosely or place them in folders. By storing the plates and film in this manner they can be easily damaged or destroyed by sliding against one another. Noting the high probability of customers reordering the same job, keeping the films in good shape will almost eliminate the increased cost of restripping the job or even replating the job for the printing company.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation there has existed a longstanding need among those individuals who have encountered this particular problem in the past; and the provision of such a device to solve this problem is a stated objective of the present invention.